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Oct 03, 2011 John Hiatt By Frank Valish

John Hiatt has been making albums for New West Records for nearly a decade now, and it’s clear that the stint has rejuvenated a career that’s quickly approaching the 40-year mark. Hiatt has made some of his most consistently great albums since 2003’s Beneath This Gruff Exterior, including last year’s The Open Road, but Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns is something of a mixed bag. Hiatt’s well-worn baritone and Americana-drenched blues fare well on songs such as the slide guitar-led “All the Way Under,” and the fiery opening track, “Damn This Town” (choice lyric: “I gotta sister who’s a theif and she’s filled with hate/Now she’s gotta job working for the state”).

“Don’t Wanna Leave You Now” and “Adios to California” benefit from simple instrumental shuffle and exquisite vocal melody. And no John Hiatt album would be complete without a couple of sentimental ballads, in this case the string-accompanied “Don’t Wanna Leave You Now” and the touching “‘Til I Get My Lovin’ Back.” But elsewhere, songs such as the car drivin’ tune “Detroit Made” seem obvious. And tracks like “Down Around My Place,” while strong on image-filled narrative, seem to lack a certain punch that Hiatt does so well. Overall, Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns is a solid addition to Hiatt’s recent catalog, but often times it seems to want for more. (www.johnhiatt.com)

Author rating: 5/10